The Idaho Way: Secret task force records, the cost of growth and ‘get a shot, win a gun’

By Scott McIntosh, Opinion Editor

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Idaho Lt. Gov. Janice McGeachin’s fight with a reporter over a very simple public records request should bother every Idahoan concerned about government transparency.

Idaho Capital Sun reporter Audrey Dutton in April requested a copy of the Google Sheet data from the lieutenant governor’s education indoctrination task force feedback form.

As you may recall, McGeachin convened a task force to root out any indoctrination going on in public schools, aiming “to protect our young people from the scourge of critical race theory, socialism, communism and Marxism.”

To help the task force, McGeachin asked the public to fill out a Google survey with their stories.

The lieutenant governor’s office has been obstructive, less than forthright and opaque, and has worked to delay the release of the public records. It’s going on two months now.

“They are insistent that we give them YOUR personal information,” McGeachin wrote in a Facebook post on her official lieutenant governor page.

Please read my column explaining why you should care about public records remaining public and not held in secret.

Does growth really pay for itself?

A new planning tool that calculates the cost of growth is a game changer for development in Boise and throughout the Treasure Valley. It should help to answer that age-old question, particularly in fast-growing Boise: Does growth really pay for itself?

My latest column details how this new tool will help cities and counties make that call.

100 Deadliest Days: Talk to your kids about safe driving

This summer driving season is off to a really bad start on Idaho’s roads. So please have a talk with your teen driver and other loved ones about the 100 Deadliest Days. It’s not lame or cliche to do so. Let them know that the last thing you want is a visit at your door from a police officer who’s there to inform you that your loved one was killed in a car crash.

Having that talk with a family member could mean the difference between a trip to the hospital and a trip to the morgue.

Get a shot, win a gun

In West Virginia, you could win a gun, a custom-outfitted truck, a weekend getaway or even $1.5 million — if you get the COVID-19 vaccine. In Ohio, five people will win $1 million each in that state’s incentive lottery program encouraging residents to get vaccinated.

With one of the worst vaccination rates in the country, it would be a great idea for Idaho to use a lottery to incentivize Idahoans to get the vaccine. Get a shot, win a gun.

Boise’s office of police accountability

While the city of Boise has been largely immune to many “big city” problems so far, it has not been immune to questions and debates about defunding the police and use of force. As more people move to our area, those big-city problems will no doubt increase. Unfortunately, we’re also likely to have negative outcomes from police-public interactions. Being proactive and prepared for such issues will be important.

That’s why our editorial board supports proposed changes to the city of Boise’s Office of Police Oversight.

Jan. 6 commission

The Jan. 6 riots at the U.S. Capitol were nothing short of an insurrection, as armed domestic terrorists threatened the lives of our elected representatives while those whose job it was to protect the Capitol were caught flat-footed. Whatever outside assistance came to help was too late and too little.

And yet two members of Idaho’s Republican congressional delegation — Sen. Mike Crapo and Rep. Russ Fulcher — voted against the effort to investigate what went wrong at the Capitol that day with a bipartisan commission, and Sen. Jim Risch is listed as not voting.

It’s time for Idahoans to revoke the free passes Idaho’s lawmakers in Washington have had for years, writes Bob Kustra in his latest column.

What you’re saying

This week, we’ve received letters on wolves, farm labor, indoctrination task force, public lands and recreation, Mass dispensation ending, Ammon Bundy running for governor, unemployment benefits and more.

I also received a really nice note from a gentleman in St. Louis who read my column on the USS Oklahoma. He relayed a story about a USS Oklahoma sailor who is buried at their national cemetery there and how his local Boy Scout troop came across his gravesite.

You can read those letters and more by clicking here.

You can submit a letter to the editor or guest opinion by clicking here.

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